Preached by the late REV. DR. GEORGE MACKAY in the
Free North Church, Inverness.
“Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fail” (2 PETER i. 10).
LET us make a few observations on the following points:—
First—The exhortations the Apostle gives us, and the duty here imposed upon us. There are just a few things under this head to which I would like to turn your attention. The duty to give all diligence to make our calling and election sure. This work, my friends, is a very important work which the Apostle sets before us, and we should study well the duty. It is not less than that which affects our salvation through eternity, and we should make strict enquiry whether it is heaven or hell in the end. If an eternity of happiness or woe, depend upon it it is certainly an important and imperative duty. Let me press this upon you—the duty described is a necessary duty, and it is an absolute necessity to perform it. We must leave this world ere long, and we must be in heaven or hell, either where the spirits of just men are made perfect, or in hell with the devil and his angels. The duty set before us here describes a work which is very difficult. It is very difficult to perform this work, and while the devil, the world, and the flesh are alive, we must fight the good fight of faith, and, depend upon it, religion is not such an easy thing, as so many fancy. My friends, Satan is the god of this world, and his servants will do his work, for he has only to say go and he goeth, and do and he doeth it. While the breath is in you, the flesh wars against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh. Let us notice before we leave this point that it is a constant duty. It is not by fits and starts, as some imagine, but it is a constant work in which the true Christian must be engaged while he is in this world, for it is he that endureth until the end that will be saved. We must see that our calling is from God, and hence we must again and again be enquiring whether we are in the election of grace, and make this sure. We are to make all diligence to make our calling and election sure, and I am afraid there are thousands who deceive themselves upon this important point. They take for granted that they are chosen of God, and hence they go on, going down to the eternal world without having an interest in Christ. They are deceived, and we should be on our guard.
In the second place, under this head, let us notice how this duty is to be performed. I notice, in the first place, that it is not a duty that you can perform with carelessness and indifference. There are some in the world that think nothing of religion; they have no doubt or difficulty; they are living under an awful curse. The first thing I would notice here is that the command is that we ought to give all diligence to make our calling and election sure, and an important duty surely requires diligence; preparation for eternity is a hard work. You can do nothing in the world without diligence. If you are a student you must be diligent, and if a merchant you must be diligent before you can be rich. Diligence evidently implies in it the use of all the lawful means which God appointed in His word. We must be diligent in prayer. We must diligently use all the means God has appointed, and if we neglect this we cannot be diligent. We must refrain from all sinful propensities; we must cultivate the graces of the spirit; we must be diligent in regard to all these, bringing into exercise the graces of the Spirit; all diligence must be given to the graces which God communicates to us, and hence surely this is an important duty. The question comes to be: “Are you diligent in prayer; how often do you pray in the day? Twice in the day—morning and evening?” Be diligent in prayer, and if you be diligent you must be constant at prayer, like Joshua keeping up Moses’ hands, not the literal hand of prayer which some people have, for it requires the Spirit in the performance of this duty. We must also exercise diligence in listening to the word. We must pay special attention to the word of God when we read and study it. Seek and strive to know what is the mind of the Spirit in the word you read. Giving all diligence implies that we must use all the powers of the mind; the understanding must be opened to see what God says; the affections must be raised to things above, where Christ sitteth at the right hand of God. We must also have all the diligence of the soul engaged.
In the third place, under this head, the duty that is enforced upon us. What does it imply to be diligent, and what is it in regard to which we must be diligent? Your Bibles say, “Make your calling and election sure.” There are two kinds of calls; there is the call I give you to come to Christ, but I cannot make you come to Christ; none can come to the Son except the Father draws him. We must be born again, and this call evidently implies in it all that is necessary for salvation, and what we need for salvation through Jesus, the only name given under heaven, whereby we can be saved. There cannot be an effectual call without the Spirit and the word. Man cannot do it. We can preach the Gospel and give the call, but it is the Spirit that calls effectually. You will notice this calling springs from your election by God, who purposed from all eternity to make provision for the human race. These are secrets we do not know, and we should not try to pry into them, but we should try to make our election sure.
In the second place, let us see the things which are necessary in order to make this calling and election sure. There is an evidence that it can be made sure. If you go back a few verses and refer to them you will find, “And beside this giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, and to virtue knowledge, and to knowledge temperance, and to temperance patience, and to patience godliness, and to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness charity; for if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that you shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” I only purpose to make a few observations as I find them set down here. In regard to faith, it is written: “By grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.” You will notice that diligence follows true faith, for where there is faith there must be works—faith without works is dead. In regard to knowledge, we must have a knowledge of Christ, knowledge of the way of salvation; but I notice again in regard to this knowledge there must be added to it temperance. We must be temperate in our knowledge. In regard to patience, we must be patient in trouble. It is hard when our friends are removed and when our earthly possessions are taken away, to say, like Job: “The Lord gave, the Lord hath taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord.” We must exercise patience in regard to these things if we have the mind of Christ in us. We must exercise godliness and brotherly kindness. If I rebuke sin this is love—”Whom the Lord loveth he correcteth”—and if He chastens us it is in love, for it is for our good. In regard to charity, let us see that it is of the right kind. It is not charity to indulge in sin or to have a love for sin.
Let us notice, briefly, in the last place, the motive that is implied, “for if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ.” This is the motive that is here implied. We must be seeking perfection for these things. Are we seeking perfection? This is a question to be answered by those who hear me.
Commentary on Song of Solomon.—Rev. A. Mackay wishes us to state that all the free copies of the above were disposed of before 9th November. Those whose applications were sent after this date will understand, therefore, the reason why copies were not sent them.